Burra and Juniors make progress in hockey knockout

Burra and Juniors both progressed in hockey’s Lizzie Polson Cup knockout competition while in the Association Rosebowl league there were wins for Whalsay and Delting.

Lizzie Polson Cup

Spurs 2, Burra 3

Thursday’s game was high energy from the start. Although Spurs managed to keep play in Burra’s half, they were unlucky not to get the ball past keeper Jessica Bradley who had an excellent game.

Burra soon broke free and a long corner from Stacey Laurenson saw her hit a powerful ball in to Bethany Laurenson who knocked it past the Spurs keeper.

The Spurs midfield and forwards persevered but Burra’s defence and keeper proved too strong. A break from Kristan Robertson saw her skilfully carry the ball from the halfway line into the Spurs circle and slot it past the keeper for Burra’s second goal.

The second half saw the energy increase with several injuries occurring. Spurs’ efforts finally paid off when a short corner saw Sarah Grogan scoring after receiving a strong hit from Morag Fox.

End-to-end play saw both teams scoring another goal each, with Joyce Adamson netting for Burra and Grogan on target again for Spurs.

Players of the match were Jessica Bradley for Burra and Gayle Johnston for Spurs.

Zetland 2, Juniors 2 (Juniors won 2-1 on penalty flicks)

Juniors started strongly as they immediately applied the pressure on the Zetland team who could only field 10 players.

Great attacking play from Lorrie Robertson and Karis Irvine down the middle of the park was causing lots of problems for the Zetland defence but good clearances from Joanne Stewart and Dawn Anderson kept them at bay.

Zetland began to settle and some good linking play from Alice Unsworth, Aimee Keith and Stacey Gardener saw them start to put pressure on the Juniors defence and keeper. Juniors were first to break the deadlock as Robertson rounded three defenders to strike home a great goal.

Zetland did not take long to respond as Keith powered up the park, taking on a number of players, before striking an impressive shot on goal to even the scores.

The teams could not be separated as they both tried desperately to secure that all-important second goal with both keepers working hard to deny their opponents the lead as they saved a number of shots on goal.

Zetland took the lead just before the end of the second half through a well-worked short corner with a strong strike from Keith heading towards the goal where Erica Mikolajcak was waiting at the back post to slot home a fantastic second.

Juniors came out fighting in the second half with periods where their attack was relentless. Zetland were looking tired but great determination from Hannah Irvine and Eildh Coull in midfield saw them stop a number of attacks and they worked hard to link the defence and attack effectively.

Juniors were awarded a short corner late on in the game, with the ball finding Debbie Sneddon at the top of the circle. She took a shot on goal which Ashley Burgess at the back post slotted home for the equaliser.

Zetland were awarded a penalty corner just as the final whistle was blown but the Juniors stayed calm and cleared the ball which signalled the end of the game.

This was not the end, however, as it was a knockout competition. There had to be a winner so the game was to be decided by penalty flicks.

The first two shots by both teams were either saved by the keepers or were placed wide of the goal. Unsworth stepped up to the penalty spot and successfully slotted home a flick to put Zetland ahead. Juniors’ next shot was saved by keeper Debie Kane but Zetland missed their next shot and Juniors secured their next flick through Abbey Irvine to even the scores.

A nailbiting finish to a very exciting game saw Zetland’s last shot saved by keeper Megan Nicholson and then Juniors’ final shot from Debbie Sneddon was driven past the keeper to secure the win and progression to the next round.

Player of the match for Zetland was Alice Unsworth while for Juniors it was Lorrie Robertson.

Association Rosebowl

Whalsay 3, Spurs 0

Both teams battled for domination from the outset with strong, determined play in midfield. Maggie Irvine and Alison Williamson linked well in Whalsay’s central area but a keen-eyed Kara Thomson read the game and broke up play on numerous occasions.

Sarah Grogan and Fiona Shearer were quick to channel Spurs’ play down the left wing with good support from Emma Gray. Fiona Dally, however, continually blocked their advances and calmly spread the ball wide. Whalsay broke the deadlock when Angelina Jamieson hammered the ball from the top D and Williamson, just wide of the sticks, connected to produce a superb finish high in the roof of the net.

This lifted Whalsay’s game and shortly afterwards Jamieson thundered in another strike from a short corner, which deflected off a defender and hammered the backboard.

Whalsay’s attacking play intensified and in the dying minutes of the first half Spurs keeper Elaine Smith was forced to make a succession of good saves.

After the half-time whistle Spurs dug their heels in and switched play around. Gayle Johnson swung good crosses in from the right but Sonya Shearer and Fiona Dally had the greens’ defence well organised and on their toes.

Whalsay proceeded to defend a series of short corners from which Spurs had a goal deemed illegal. On the break Catherine Williamson and Dianne Shearer made slick, fast passes down the left, driving the ball towards their front line who were keeping Spurs defenders Susan Morrison and Emma Inkster under constant pressure.

The pressure paid off when Deborah Mowat swept the ball to Jamieson who slotted in Whalsay’s third from close range.

Best on the night for the home team was the consistent defending of Fiona Dally, while Kara Thomson’s determined play stood out for Spurs.

Scalloway 0, Delting 2

Another glorious night saw Scalloway step on to the pitch with their brand new strips against a determined Delting.

Scalloway were quick to settle and were producing superb passing between Naomi Johnson, Rhiannon Inkster and Karis Irvine who were feeding these balls on to their forwards but Delting’s Toni Sidgwick was standing strong in goal to thwart Scalloway’s attempts.

Scalloway dominated most of the play in the first half and were very unlucky not to open the scoring. Not long before the half-time whistle went, Delting caught Scalloway on the back foot which resulted in goals from Brenda Leask and Donna Murray which gave Delting a 2-0 lead.

Delting started the second half well and were rewarded early on with a penalty corner. A strong clearance from Anne-Marie Robinson saw Scalloway pushing forward again until an injury to Hannah Burgess halted the game. Thankfully she is recovering well.

The game restarted with a bully-off between Karis Irvine and Nicola Blance, which Karis won allowing Scalloway to attack Delting’s D. Once again goals from Scalloway were elusive but praise must go to the Delting defence.

With the last few minutes of the game left, Delting were soon on the attack and were awarded two short corners but a strong Scalloway defence held tight and kept them at bay before the full-time whistle.

Players of the match were Kerry Burgess for Delting and Naomi Johnson for Scalloway.

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